Spell Expiration vs. Spellcaster Expiration [Archive] - Wizards Community

Spell Expiration vs. Spellcaster Expiration [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
Rood_Inverse
03-08-08, 10:58 AM I hadn't thought of this until reviewing the adventure for today.

Say a 5th-level cleric casts Darkness. The duration will be 50 minutes, if I'm not mistaken, at 10 min/level. The cleric is killed 7 minutes into combat.

Do you still have 47 minutes of magical darkness?

Just what happens to a caster's spells (that don't require constant concentration), when the caster dies?
Shaggy_Shaggs
03-08-08, 11:05 AM If it's not a spell that requires active concentration to continue, it continues. An exception would be if conditions for the spell somehow became invalid when the caster died (for example, Fox's Cunning affects creatures, not objects... if the caster buffs himself with Fox's Cunning and then becomes a corpse, the spell goes away because it no longer has a valid target).
Rood_Inverse
03-08-08, 11:26 AM And I trust the spell can still be dispelled, then?

If a bard wanted to countersong something that's a valid target (would Tasha's Hideous Laughter count as a verbal attack?), after the original spellcaster had died, he could, right?

Sure Dispel Magic will dispell it... But I'm trying to scratch my head for lower-level ways to get rid of still-standing spell effects, instead of just waiting for the expiration.
Avatar of Kokusho
03-08-08, 11:43 AM In most cases, unless it's an effect with a duration of instantaneous or permanent, I rule that if a caster dies, so does his spell. It just makes sense to me that once the caster's life force is gone, the magic behind what he cast is also gone...

This helps immensely in lower-level campaigns.
weasel0
03-08-08, 03:03 PM By RAW, it only goes away when the caster dies only if it's got a duration of concentration, or specifically says otherwise.
Phrennzy
03-08-08, 11:23 PM If the spell faded with the death of the caster, all those cool dungeons would be so much empty tunnels. Magical traps and effects would be long gone. The Tomb of Horrors would be no such thing...
runestar
03-10-08, 03:49 AM Yeah, and there would be no point casting long duration spells like bestow curse on you, if it just went away with the death of its caster...:P
Avatar of Kokusho
03-10-08, 08:27 AM If the spell faded with the death of the caster, all those cool dungeons would be so much empty tunnels. Magical traps and effects would be long gone. The Tomb of Horrors would be no such thing...

Yeah, and there would be no point casting long duration spells like bestow curse on you, if it just went away with the death of its caster...:P

Which is why this is only what I do for low level campaigns, which I usually don't run. Low level characters are too squishy....

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Rood_Inverse 03-08-08, 10:58 AM	I hadn't thought of this until reviewing the adventure for today. Say a 5th-level cleric casts Darkness. The duration will be 50 minutes, if I'm not mistaken, at 10 min/level. The cleric is killed 7 minutes into combat. Do you still have 47 minutes of magical darkness? Just what happens to a caster's spells (that don't require constant concentration), when the caster dies?
Shaggy_Shaggs 03-08-08, 11:05 AM	If it's not a spell that requires active concentration to continue, it continues. An exception would be if conditions for the spell somehow became invalid when the caster died (for example, Fox's Cunning affects creatures, not objects... if the caster buffs himself with Fox's Cunning and then becomes a corpse, the spell goes away because it no longer has a valid target).
Rood_Inverse 03-08-08, 11:26 AM	And I trust the spell can still be dispelled, then? If a bard wanted to countersong something that's a valid target (would Tasha's Hideous Laughter count as a verbal attack?), after the original spellcaster had died, he could, right? Sure Dispel Magic will dispell it... But I'm trying to scratch my head for lower-level ways to get rid of still-standing spell effects, instead of just waiting for the expiration.
Avatar of Kokusho 03-08-08, 11:43 AM	In most cases, unless it's an effect with a duration of instantaneous or permanent, I rule that if a caster dies, so does his spell. It just makes sense to me that once the caster's life force is gone, the magic behind what he cast is also gone... This helps immensely in lower-level campaigns.
weasel0 03-08-08, 03:03 PM	By RAW, it only goes away when the caster dies only if it's got a duration of concentration, or specifically says otherwise.
Phrennzy 03-08-08, 11:23 PM	If the spell faded with the death of the caster, all those cool dungeons would be so much empty tunnels. Magical traps and effects would be long gone. The Tomb of Horrors would be no such thing...
runestar 03-10-08, 03:49 AM	Yeah, and there would be no point casting long duration spells like bestow curse on you, if it just went away with the death of its caster...:P
Avatar of Kokusho 03-10-08, 08:27 AM	If the spell faded with the death of the caster, all those cool dungeons would be so much empty tunnels. Magical traps and effects would be long gone. The Tomb of Horrors would be no such thing... Yeah, and there would be no point casting long duration spells like bestow curse on you, if it just went away with the death of its caster...:P Which is why this is only what I do for low level campaigns, which I usually don't run. Low level characters are too squishy....